This Matters

Guests: Todd Irvine, arborist and founder of City Forest

When a woman was killed by a falling tree branch in Trinity Bellwoods park recently, it struck many as an unforseeable freak accident. But the danger was foreseen by at least one man, and his warnings went unheeded as the Star reported this week. Arborist Todd Irvine has also been warning the city that its maintenance of trees is often making them more dangerous, and joins host Edward Keenan to explain how and why the city needs to improve how its treats the urban forest.

Read the related column here.

This episode was produced by Ed Keendan, Julia De Laurentiis Johnston and Sean Pattendon.

Guest: Deborah Dundas, books editor for the Toronto Star

A recent Statistics Canada survey found 1 in 4 Canadians would not be able to cover an unexpected expense of $500 if they had to. Almost half were deeply concerned about their ability to afford rent or housing. It’s an important time to talk about class divisions in Canada. And Deborah Dundas wants to do that through her new book “On Class.” She’s on the podcast today to talk about why we need to talk about class, and what not talking about it means for whose stories get told and by whom.

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Paulo Marques.

Guest: Kate Allen, Climate change reporter for the Toronto Star

The United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has dubbed it a “cruel summer." A blistering heatwave is sweeping across North America and Europe with record high temperatures triggering other travesties like devastating wildfires and flash floods with July being declared the world’s hottest month on record. Climate change has been explicitly blamed for some of what we’ve seen recently, and scientists are saying this is a terrifying glimpse of the future with the worst yet to come. Meanwhile, for many Canadians, climate change has gone from feeling like a remote scientific term; and beginning to impact their lives in a very tangible way.

Audio sources: The Guardian

Guest: Megan Ogilvie, heath reporter for the Toronto Star

More than three years after the COVID-19 pandemic that took tens of thousands of Canadian lives, a group of the country’s top medical experts have published a scathing indictment of Canada’s COVID response. In a sweeping set of research papers and editorials published in the British Medical Journal, these experts are calling on the government for a national inquiry into its COVID response — something that’s already happening in other countries. They say this process is imperative to learn from what was lost, because it is only a matter of time before we face the next big pandemic. We take a deep dive into “the COVID papers."

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Sean Pattendon.

WARNING: This story includes sensitive subject matter, including discussion of gun violence, gender-based violence and intimate partner violence, that could be triggering for some listeners.

Guest: Michele Henry, staff reporter

It was an unthinkable act of violence: a lone gunman, seemingly angry at fellow residents in his Vaughan condo building, unleashed a torrent of bullets that left five people dead and others injured. It was the deadliest mass shooting in the GTA’s recent history and now, we understand more about the man behind the crime. Our country’s worst killers do not need notoriety. That’s not why we are here today, but it is important to understand motivations and the reasons why. As the Star’s Michele Henry found, there are connections to our notorious criminals who have perpetuated violence and we must pay attention to what those things are.

This episode was produced by Brian Bradley, Sean Pattendon and Crawford Blair.

Guest: Susan Delacourt, national columnist

Wednesday’s oath-taking ceremony at Rideau Hall marked one of the most significant cabinet shuffles of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s eight-year tenure, a move that’s being framed as a game changer ahead of a pivotal moment. Seven newcomers were welcomed to the front bench, seven were dropped and almost 30 out of 38 ministries saw big changes. The Liberals have positioned it as a crucial reboot of a team that will lead them to their fourth re-election. The opposition is not buying it, as ordinary Canadians are focused on the economy, health, and housing among other serious issues. Will this be enough to satisfy Canadian voters? We try to untangle the political knots.

Audio sources: CTV News, CPAC

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Sean Pattendon.

WARNING: This story contains sensitive subject matter, including suicide and self-harm, that could be triggering for some readers.

Guest: Sheila Wang, investigative reporter

A new study has revealed that tons of mercury dumped as industrial waste upstream of Grassy Narrows First Nations decades ago has contributed to the community’s youth attempting suicide at a rate three times higher than that of other First Nations in Canada. Residents of the community have long reported tremors, slurred speech, impaired hearing, tunnel vision and lost muscle co-ordination, but this is the first time a direct connection has been made between mercury contamination and the deteriorating mental health of the younger generation. We take a look at this new information and its significance.

Audio sources: Star files, Global News, APTN News

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Sean Pattendon.

If you are thinking of suicide or know someone who is, there is help. Resources are available online at crisisservicescanada.ca or you can connect to the national suicide prevention helpline at 1-833-456-4566, or the Kids Help Phone at 1-800-668-6868.

Guest: Clarrie Feinstein, business reporter

Highlighting that those trying to rent while earning minimum wage are fast losing ground, a recent report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives paints a bleak picture of affordability in most Canadian cities. It all comes down to the “rental wage,” the hourly wage that would be required to be able to afford rent while working a 40-hour week and spending no more than 30 per cent of gross income on housing. The report highlights that across most of Canada, the minimum wage is not near enough for a one-bedroom apartment. In Toronto, one would have to earn more than double the provincial minimum wage of $15.50. We take a look at the findings of this report and the factors that led us here.

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Sean Pattendon.

Guest: Tonda MacCharles, Ottawa Bureau Chief

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is a $4.2-billion dollar national force looking over eight provinces, three territories, 150 municipalities and 600 Indigenous communities. But now, sources say the PMO wants Mounties to be transformed into the “FBI of the North.” The idea would pull the RCMP out of the business of front-line, day-to-day contract policing and shift focus to challenges like national security and terrorism, financial crimes, cybercrime and organized crime. Such radical change will take time but, in the interim, the idea has found high-profile support in key senior RCMP and political offices.

This episode was produced by Sean Pattendon and Brian Bradley.

Guest: Kenyon Wallace and Diana Zlomislic, investigative reporters

A new Star investigation has revealed that owners of some of Toronto’s cheapest homes might be paying disproportionately more in property taxes than those living in luxurious mansions. Analyzing roughly 12,000 homes sold in 2016, Star reporters found the burden of this tax inequality is shouldered by those with the least-expensive houses, while owners of some of the city’s richest homes in fancy neighbourhoods get a break. Who tallies up the bill? It is the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC), a publicly funded agency, who carries the task of valuating properties for tax purposes. While the agency says their assessment process has already been extensively reviewed by several third-party evaluators, the Star’s data analysis revealed there are many over-assessed — and overtaxed — homeowners.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This podcast episode has been edited to clarify the deadlines involved in challenging a residential property assessment. In a non-reassessment year, the deadline to submit a request for reconsideration to the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation is March 31. In a reassessment year, that deadline is 120 days after a homeowner receives their notice. While homeowners can submit a request for reconsideration every year, if they miss the submission deadline, they cannot seek an adjustment for a previous year, only the current year.

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz, Brian Bradley and Sean Pattendon.

Guest: Lex Harvey, transportation reporter

As TTC service cuts and dense Toronto traffic make commuting much harder, an increasing number of people find themselves turning to alternatives like personal electric vehicles, or PEVs for short. There are all sorts of oddball versions on city streets and those who use them say they might be the answer to traffic woes and they are environmentally-friendly. There’s one speed bump — e-scooters and other PEVs (aside from e-bikes) are illegal in Toronto. We take a look at the hot new PEV culture picking up speed in the city.

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Sean Pattendon.

Guest: Sebastian Bron, reporter at The Hamilton Spectator

Our health care systems are set up with the expectation someone struggling is functional enough to schedule, travel and arrive at appointments and be in the driver’s seat of their care. Not everyone can do that, so St. Joe’s mobile mental-health clinic in Hamilton has flipped the model on its head. Nurses and paramedics hit the road by bus to provide mobile mental health care everywhere from a Tim Hortons coffee shop, to a library, a shelter or off the grid completely. Patients are more engaged with their care, they are more regularly treated, and they are able to build rapport and trust with the broken system they are used to. Sebastian Bron, a general assignment reporter at The Hamilton Spectator, recently spent a day with the team and their patients. He joins “This Matters” to share his observations.

This episode was produced by Sean Pattendon and Brian Bradley.

Audio Sources: Sebastian Bron

Guest: Shellene Drakes-Tull, contributing columnist

How many racialized people calling it out does it take to fix racism? Toronto Star contributing columnist Shellene Drakes-Tull addressed this head on in a recent column, where she pointed out the Canadian trend to issue a new survey, report or article comes out every few weeks that states what any racialized person has known for years: racism exists in Canada. Any new data is never good. BIPOC representation is down, systemic racism is up, workplaces are challenging and people of colour are tired of repeating the numbers to general shock, surprise or disbelief. Why does nothing really change? Why is it so hard to make someone believe that racism is real and present in our everyday lives, workplaces and institutions?

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Paolo Marques.

Guest: Katie Daubs, senior writer

The City of Toronto manages more than 850 playgrounds, but city-provided information is lacking and children have critical questions. How fast is the slide? Will I vomit on the merry-go-round? Is there a place to play house? Parents also have questions. Is their shade? Is the space accessible? Is a bathroom close by? To get the information, one Toronto dad has taken his children to over 200 parks and built an essential guide with important information any family would need before heading outside. The Star's Katie Daubs joins “This Matters” to talk about his findings, the best and worst playgrounds in Toronto and the fun playground history in the city.

This episode was produced by Sean Pattendon and Brian Bradley.

Guest: Victoria Gibson, affordable housing reporter

Asylum seekers come to Canada hoping to find safety, refuge and the chance to build a better life. Instead, many have ended up sleeping on the streets of Toronto after being caught in a bureaucratic tug of war between Toronto and Ottawa, as the city and the federal governments are pointing at each other on who should fund the responsibility of housing refugees. According to a new policy that came into effect June 1, the city is now directing asylum seekers in need of emergency beds to the federal government. We look at this new policy and hear the stories of the most vulnerable people who are being impacted.

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Sean Pattendon.

Guest: Jacques Gallant, courts and justice reporter

The Ford government is facing accusations of patronage for bringing back the King’s Counsel (K.C. for short) special designation for lawyers and awarding it to numerous Tory politicians, staffers and loyalists. Meant to be “given to lawyers who have demonstrated a commitment to the pursuit of legal excellence in service to the Crown, the public and their communities,” the government’s move provoked significant reaction as the list of appointees included Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney, who had just been called to the bar in Ontario days before. Further, The Star revealed that more than a dozen lawyers who received the K.C. honour had recently donated to Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey’s election campaign. Jacques Gallant, a crime and justice reporter, joins “This Matters” to talk about the Ford King’s Counsel move.

This episode was produced by Paulo Marques and Brian Bradley.

Guest: Paris Marx, author and host of “Tech Won’t Save Us” podcast

Threads, Meta’s new social media app that is being called the “Twitter killer” by some experts, has now become the fastest growing app in history with 100 million new users since it was officially launched on July 5. Many see it as a sign of social media user’s disenchantment with Twitter after the platform went through a series of controversial and unpopular changes since tech giant Elon Musk took over. Threads is being marketed as the “saner” version of Twitter, but many are not convinced, considering Meta’s own controversial history with a far-reaching private data policy and allegations involving amplifying disinformation and hate speech. Meanwhile, Twitter has threatened legal action against Meta accusing the company of stealing trade secrets to create a copycat app. We unravel some of the Threads drama.

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz and Sean Pattendon.

This episode originally aired January 9, 2023.

Guest: Jim Rankin, staff reporter

Twenty years ago, the Star published a landmark and controversial investigation examining data that showed police interaction with racialized people occurred at a higher rate, kicking of years of stories that reinforced this initial conclusion. This past year, after looking at their own data, acting Toronto police chief James Ramer apologized for police interactions with the Black community. The problems persist through all areas of law enforcement despite the acknowledgments.

This episode was produced by Alexis Green, Paulo Marques and Raju Mudhar.

Audio source: CBC and Globe and Mail

This episode originally aired June 2, 2023.

Guest: David Suzuki, world-renowned geneticist and environmentalist

Before the Paris Agreement, before the Kyoto Protocol, before even the UN Climate Convention was signed in Rio, world-renowned geneticist and environmentalist David Suzuki was ringing the alarm bell and saying that climate change is a “matter of survival.” In this episode, Suzuki joins “This Matters” guest host and climate reporter Marco Chown Oved to discuss the state of today’s environmental movement and where it needs to go.

Audio sources: CBC

This episode was produced by Alexis Green, Marco Chown-Oved and Paulo Marques